


Marks of Possession

by Angylsmuse, Orithain



Series: Fourth Pass [39]
Category: Dragonriders of Pern - Anne McCaffrey
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-28
Updated: 2017-01-28
Packaged: 2018-09-20 11:37:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9489326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angylsmuse/pseuds/Angylsmuse, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orithain/pseuds/Orithain
Summary: Justy and Hal want visible reminders of their mates.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Sequel to “A Dangerous Friendship”, “Pillow Fight” and indirectly to “Heart’s Desire”.  
> Originally posted March 2003.

_**4P11.04.16** _  
_**Babalon Weyr** _

Greenrider J’stice of the Queens’ Wing raced through the halls like a madman, his bronze flit Hijinx trailing after him. N’Chal had finally left on drills, and he knew that his friend wasn’t on duty, but his friend’s lover was. Now was the perfect time.

J’stice had already done his research; he’d talked to his wingmate Junior Weyrwoman Taima about her experience, and he’d asked the Weyrwoman, his wingleader, for permission to take himself and another to Triad for the afternoon. Now all he needed was Hal.

Sliding to a stop in front of the rooms Hal shared with his lover, Armscrafter Kaveran, Justy knocked hastily then exploded into the room without waiting for a reply. “Are you up? Are you dressed? What are you waiting for? Chal is gone, Kav is busy, and we’re both free! Lyri’s outside, and she’s sworn herself to secrecy as has Jinx; all we need is you and we’re gone!” The young HAD bounced around the room.

He and Hal had been plotting and planning for what felt like months, and the younger man was anxious to finally put all their hard work into action. Today the friends were going to surprise their mates. Today they were getting tattooed!

Abruptly awakened from the sated sleep he’d fallen into after Kav left earlier that morning, Hal grumbled his displeasure and buried his head under the covers, trying to muffle the noise. When the bedding was tugged away from his grip, he sat up with a growl, a black frown drawing his brow down. Finally realizing that the bouncing, babbling blur was Justy, he blinked dazedly at his friend as he tried to wake up fully.

“Wha—“ he croaked, knuckling his eyes, indifferent to his nudity or the passion marks on his body now displayed to Justy’s interested gaze.

“Looks like you had an interesting night,” Justy snickered as he sat in a nearby chair, not really seeing his friend’s nudity, so used to it from his time in the weyrling barracks. Opening the press next to the chair, he quickly pulled out some fresh clothes and tossed them towards the bed.

“C’mon, hurry up and get dressed, and get a bath too. You stink!” he chuckled as the older man glared at him. “You can tell me all about your sordid sexual encounter with your brawny armscrafter once we get to the Wherry; now come on! We don’t have all day!”

Hal scowled at his sadistic friend. “Not all of us are lucky enough to have our own bathing pools, you know,” he grumbled. “See how often you clean up before going to sleep if you have to walk through half the Weyr to get a bath!” As he muttered, he yanked on a robe and picked up the clothes, sighing at the thought of the walk to the bathing pool.

“You could have brought a cup of klah at least,” he griped.

“Nag, nag, nag,” Justy teased his older friend. “You make one harridan of a wife, my friend,” the greenrider chuckled as he ducked the flying pillow with ease. All that training to avoid Thread came in handy after all.

“I’ll trade you the convenience of having a bathing pool in your rooms if you wanna go up and take the chance of getting Threaded day after day?” the younger man replied seriously. “It’s not so bad for me, I’m in the queens’ wing, and we fly lower, but... Chal’s up there all the time, and he comes home ash burned and Threaded and sometimes badly injured - both he and Kanadath. And I can _hear_ them get hurt. Oh yeah, I’d gladly trade off my bathing pool so that we didn’t have to fight Thread again.

“Now go and get dressed; I want to surprise N’Chal!” the younger man pushed his friend out of the room and then turned left as Hal turned right. “And if you hurry, I can promise klah and food waiting for you when you get back. Gotta love being a dragonrider by times!”

***

Hal came back after his bath, dressed, awake, and hungry. He walked into his rooms to put away his robe and found Justy sitting there with the promised klah and food. He tossed the robe in the general direction of the bed and fell on the breakfast like someone who hadn’t seen food in a sevenday.

“Thanks,” he mumbled around a mouthful, ignoring Justy’s laughter. “Hey, I’m sure there’ve been mornings when you and that oversized bluerider have been equally hungry!”

Justy just shook his head and grinned as he watched the older man devour enough food for two healthy dragonriders who’d just flown Thread. “Guess it’s a good thing you’ve got Kav around to help you burn all that food off; otherwise, you’d be a roly-poly harper!” he teased.

Sipping his klah and chocolate, the greenrider nibbled on his own fruit and toast, waiting impatiently for Hal to finish. He couldn’t wait for N’Chal to see what he was having done. He knew the tattoo would hurt, even with the numbweed, and he knew it would make him sick for a few days and that not very many people had them, but N’Chal had one, and he adored it.

And this way, Justy thought with a smile, this way he’d be forever branded as N’Chal’s, which he was. He belonged to his bluerider body and heart for all time, those parts that Lyri didn’t claim at least. Shaking off his thoughts, the young greenrider grinned at his friend. “You finished stuffing yourself yet?”

Hal stuck his tongue out. “If it wasn’t for Kav, I wouldn’t _need_ to eat all this food!” He gulped down a last piece of toast, finished his klah, and stood up. “Okay, ready to go. Just let me get the drawing I did of the design I want...” He headed toward a small chest as he spoke and withdrew a small, rolled hide. “All set now.”

“Shells, it’s about time. I was beginning to wonder if you’d be done before Chal was finished flying drills!” the young HAD teased his friend. Grabbing Hallam’s hand, J’stice all but dragged the harper outside, trailing flits behind them.

“Now Jinx knows better than to blab to Kan and so does Lyri, what about your flit?” the greenrider asked as he clambered up his dragon’s back then offered a hand down to his friend, turning to make sure that Hal was strapped in tightly. Last thing he needed was to lose the harper _between_. Kav would cook him for breakfast!

Hal laughed. “Don’t worry; Karci’s hiding from Kav right now. She knocked over the inkpot onto a hide he’d just finished writing this morning, and he was not pleased.”

When Justy checked his straps for the third time, Hal batted his hand away. “I’m secure, you flitterhead! If you keep that up, we’ll still be sitting here when Kav and N’Chal get back. Sit down, and let’s go.”

“I’d rather them catch us than me lose you _between_. Shards and little shells, there’d be no place on Pern I’d be safe from that maniac you call a lover!” J’stice exclaimed as he finally strapped himself in. “Not even N’Chal would be able to protect me from Kaveran!!!”

With a laugh, J’stice gently urged Lyriketh into the sky, looking back over his shoulder at his friend’s face. “And you won’t be there to protect me and distract him with your sexy ass body!”

“Didn’t know you noticed, gorgeous,” Hal replied with a laugh, simpering and batting his lashes at his friend. Both of them were still laughing when they reappeared over Triad. Staring downward, Hal said, “I can’t wait to do this. I know Kav’s going to have a fit that I did it without telling him, but I want to surprise him.” He shivered a little in anticipation. “Besides, I like how he gets when he’s being all protective. I’m sure you know what I mean.”

“Yeah,” Justy sighed with a happy smile. “Chal gets so... yummy when he feels protective of me. I just wanna melt into a puddle or something. Shells, I love that man.”

_Lyri, get us down there, will ya? I want this done and over and to be back at the Weyr before drills are done._

_Of course, J’stice,_ his green lady replied in a happy tone.

“So,” Justy continued, after he refocused on his friend and his surroundings, “you know what you’re gonna get for Kav?”

“Yeah. I actually came up with the idea when I was trying to decide what I wanted for the brand, but it was too complicated. I want to get a harp crossed with two swords, kind of a cross between the armscrafter and harper badges.” He smiled. “Jays, I love him so much.

“How ‘bout you? What are you going to get?”

“I wasn’t thinking of anything so fancy or pretty,” Justy replied after a moment. “I was thinking of maybe having a little sleeping flit all curled into a ball with a bigger blue curled around it, kinda the way Chal and I sleep at night. He surrounds me, protects me kinda. It makes me feel - well, gooey inside when I think of it,” the HAD blushed.

“That’s nice,” Hal responded, smiling. Justy was so cute when he talked about him and Chal. “It’ll be cute... like you, blondie.” He chuckled and tugged at a blond curl. He was pretty sure that Chal would think it was sweet too, even if he didn’t want Justy to get a tattoo. The two flits were just so _Justy_.

Once they landed and he and Justy stepped down, he reached up to rub the green dragon’s eyeridge. “Thank you, Lyriketh.”

Justy’s eyes unfocused for a minute, then he grinned. “Lyri said you can repay her by never writing another song that you sing in public,” he teased. “She says you’re welcome, Harper.”

Hal pouted. “No one appreciates me. Which reminds me, I need your help writing a song for Kav. Later.” He glanced toward the entrance to Triad, smiling. “I’m awfully glad for numbweed. But I think I’d do it anyway. I like having marks that say I’m Kav’s.” He smiled widely. “And he’s mine.”

“Tattoos are okay—I know a lot of people who have them—but branding? Ouch, not for me! Besides, I got a feeling that N’Chal’s gonna tan my ass blue for this little stunt, never mind what he’d do if I got _branded_. Jays, I love it when he goes all protective like that. Feel like he’s been taking care of me my whole life, and it feels wonderful,” the greenrider sighed happily, not caring about the consequences.

“C’mon, crackdust, let’s go get our ownership tags put on. Last one inside gets to go last!” he laughed, racing for the door.

“Hey!” Hal laughed and chased after the greenrider, long legs rapidly making up the distance. They burst through the door, both still laughing, and made for the bartender who was going to tattoo them. He was really looking forward to seeing Kav’s reaction!


End file.
